Copper advances most in a month as China industrial profits gain

Three-month copper gains 1.7%

Copper in London jumped by the most in almost a month on expectations that a recovering Chinese economy will boost demand from the largest user.

Metal for delivery in three months gained as much as 1.7 percent to $7,945.25 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, the most since Nov. 29, and was at $7,926.50 as of 10:08 a.m. Shanghai time. The market was closed for two days for public holidays. Copper for April delivery on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained 0.6 percent to 57,480 yuan ($9,217) a ton.

Chinese industrial companies’ profits rose 22.8 percent in November from a year ago to 638.5 billion yuan, the National Bureau of Statistics said on its website today. That compared with gains of 20.5 percent in October and 3 percent in the first 11 months of the year.

“Investors now strongly believe that the Chinese economy is going to be better next year and metals demand will grow faster than this year,” Zhang Yu, an analyst at Yongan Futures Co., said by phone from Hangzhou. “Gains in construction- related commodities and equities in China this week have clearly showed the expectation of recovery.”

China’s urbanization is expected to spur 40 trillion yuan of investment by 2020, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported on Dec. 25, citing a draft plan by the National Development and Reform Commission.

Copper for delivery in March rose 0.3 percent to $3.607 a pound on the Comex in New York. On the LME, aluminum, zinc and nickel also climbed, while lead and tin were little changed.